Scientific American Magazine Table of Contents: December 2003 Issue

CURRENT ISSUE HIGHLIGHTS:

Reviews

Don't Wreck the Mars Program

ASK THE EXPERTS:

How does short-term memory work in relation to long-term memory? Are short-term daily memories somehow transferred to long-term storage while we sleep?



		SEARCH

October 22, 2007

DECEMBER 2003 CONTENTS

Get Digital access now! | Subscribe | Order issues

Find Scientific American on a newsstand near you

Free preview. Full coverage available from Scientific American Digital

FEATURES

AVIATION

The Equivocal Success of the Wright Brothers

By Daniel C. Schlenoff

The Wrights used aerial control as the key to building and flying the first airplane. But trying to refine their invention in secret nearly cost them their glory.

BIOLOGY

Does Race Exist?

By Michael J. Bamshad and Steve E. Olson

From a purely genetic standpoint, no. Nevertheless, genetic information about individuals' ancestral origins can sometimes have medical relevance

GEOSCIENCE

The Day the World Burned

By David A. Kring and Daniel D. Durda

The asteroid impact that killed the dinosaurs also ignited a firestorm that consumed the world's forests

TECHNOLOGY LEADERS

The Scientific American 50

Our second annual salute to the elite of research, industry and politics whose accomplishments are shaping a better, wiser technological future for the world.

PLANETARY SCIENCE

The New Moon

By Paul D. Spudis

Recent lunar missions have shown that there is still much to learn about Earth's closest neighbor

BIOTECHNOLOGY

The Unseen Genome: Beyond DNA

By W. Wayt Gibbs

"Epigenetic" information stored as proteins and chemicals surrounding DNA can change the meaning of genes in growth, aging and cancer

INNOVATIONS

Breath Takers

INSIGHTS

The Cells That Rule the Seas

REVIEWS

The Quest for Affordable Energy

The Editors Recommend

STAKING CLAIMS

Can Cells Be Generic?

TECHNICALITIES

Science for Cops

50, 100 AND 150 YEARS AGO

Cosmic Hydrogen -- Wright Airplane -- Canine Labor

LETTERS TO THE EDITORS

Letters

SA PERSPECTIVES

Racing to Conclusions

WORKING KNOWLEDGE

At the Moment

ANTIGRAVITY

Quod Error Demonstrandum

SKEPTIC

What's the Harm?

PUZZLING ADVENTURES

You Don't Say!

Click here to see the solution

NEWS SCAN

Circles for Space

German "Stonehenge" marks oldest observatory

The Nobel Prizes for 2003

The Royal Swedish Academy handed out four prizes to honor nine men of science for their groundbreaking contributions. Below are commentaries on two of the prizes.

Two-Second Drafts

Faster beer taps for those who just can't wait

Lowering the Boom

Quieter ways to break the sound barrier

Down to the Deep

Crossbreeding to make exploring the abyss routine

Refining Green Gold

How bioprospecting could be made to work

Science v. Law

A decade-old rule on scientific evidence comes under fire

By the Numbers: Measuring Modernity

The U.S. is not number one